Music Review: Beethoven's Symphonies 1 & 9

Date: 5 December 2015
Performers: Jaap van Zweden (conductor), Hong Kong Philharmonic
Rating: **** (4 out of 5)

All good things must come to an end. The fourth and closing chapter of the HK Phil’s Beethoven symphony cycle finished with, apropos, the “bookend symphonies.” After faltering on the opening night, the HK Phil bounced back with a series of well-executed performances that proved the skeptics wrong. The programme culminated in the Choral symphony, the most ambitious composition to be attempted by the orchestra this season. 

Heavily influenced by Mozart and Haydn, the 25-minute Symphony No. 1 made for a light aperitif, and a rather short first half...

Beethoven's Symphonies 1 & 9 with Jaap van Zweden

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Music Review: Beethoven's Symphonies 2, 4 & 5

Date: 28 November 2015
Performers: Jaap van Zweden (conductor), Hong Kong Philharmonic
Rating: ***** (5 out of 5)

The third chapter of the HK Phil’s Beethoven cycle brought together a trio of early and mid-symphonies. Whereas Beethoven’s Fifth is a universal crowd-pleaser and its famous four-note motif needs no embellishment, the Second and Fourth require a bit more work to bring to life. They suffer from the all-too-familiar “middle child syndrome” – Symphony No. 2 was so poorly received at its 1803 début that one critic compared the opening of the last movement to “a flatulence followed by a groan of pain.” Unfazed by the challenge, music director Jaap van Zweden found a way to turn the ugly sisters into Cinderella and sweep the audience off its feet.

Smaller symphonic works have always been the HK Phil’s forte, and their tight rendition of Symphony No. 2 provided ample evidence of that...

Beethoven's Symphonies 2, 4 & 5 with Jaap van Zweden

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Music Review: Beethoven's Symphonies 6 & 7

Date: 18 November 2015
Performers: Jaap van Zweden (conductor), Hong Kong Philharmonic
Rating: **** (4 out of 5)

If the opening act of the HK Phil’s Beethoven symphony cycle on 11 November was a let-down, then the second act a week later was the comeback that the orchestra sorely needed and ultimately pulled off.

The evening began with the picturesque Symphony No. 6 – Beethoven’s tribute to Mother Nature and his answer to Vivaldi’s Four Seasons. The HK Phil returned to top form, delivering the kind of velvety sounds that put the orchestra on the world map. Even though the first three movements were a touch too sluggish, the slow tempo was a deliberate move to accentuate the contrast with the violent ‘Thunderstorm’ fourth movement, before calm was restored in the serene "Shepherd’s Song" finale. The HK Phil appeared well-rehearsed, coordinated and in control.

Beethoven's Symphonies 6 & 7 with Jaap van Zweden

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Music Review: Beethoven's Symphonies 3 & 8

Date: 11 November 2015
Performers: Jaap van Zweden (conductor), Hong Kong Philharmonic
Rating: ** (2 out of 5)

Touted as the classical music event of the year and a "monumental experience for music lovers," the HK Philharmonic’s Beethoven symphony cycle – split into four concerts – dominates its 2015/16 programme. Conquering all nine masterpieces in a single season is like winning the Grand Slam in tennis or scaling the Seven Summits of the World – the challenge is tremendous, and the expectations are sky high. Can music director Jaap van Zweden deliver?

We go to the cycle’s opening concert on 11 November, which began with Symphony No. 8. Light-hearted and full of humor and zest, the so-called ‘little Symphony in F’ was said to be the composer’s personal favorite among the nine...

Beethoven's Symphonies 3 & 8 with Jaap van Zweden

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Music Review: Puccini's Tosca

Date: 10 October 2015

Performers: Opera HK

Rating: **** (4 out of 5)

Opera-goers in Hong Kong often lament the absence of home-grown talent – of which there is plenty – in local productions. The lead roles are frequently taken up by visiting European stars with more stalwart credentials, thereby creating a vicious cycle where the top billing continues to elude local artists, even on their home turf.

Puccini's Tosca by Opera HK

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Music Review: Hagen Quartet in Hong Kong

Date: 6 October 2015

Performers: Hagen Quartet

Rating: **** (4 out of 5)

The Hagen Quartet joins Alban Berg, Emerson and Mosaïques as the world’s leading contemporary string ensembles. For the past 34 years, the Hagan siblings (one of them was replaced by Rainer Schmidt in 1987) have captivated chamber music fans with their seamless blend and warm sound played on four Stradivarius instruments on loan from Japan.

Beethoven's String Quartet No.14
and Mozart's Clarinet Quintet by Hagen Quartet

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Music Review: HK Phil Season Premiere 2015

Date: 4 September 2015

Performers: Tan Dun (conductor), Zeyu Victor Li (violinist), Zhang Xinru (percussionist), Elizabeth Hainen (harpist)

Rating: *** (3 out of 5)

On September 4th, the HK Phil kicked off its 42nd season with a programme of contrasting genres. Music director Jaap van Zweden sat out the opening night and ceded the stage to Chinese composer-conductor Tan Dun. The latter is best known for his Oscar-winning score for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, as well as his involvement in the jaw-dropping 2008 Beijing Olympics opening ceremony. A heavyweight in the classical music world and a cultural ambassador for New China, Tan is a superb choice to inaugurate the new season. 

Tan Dun's symphonic works and Mendelssohn's
 Violin Concerto by Tan Dun

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Music Review: Russian National Orchestra

Date: 24 June 2015

Performers: Mikhail Pletnev (pianist/conductor), Russian National Orchestra

Rating: ***** (5 out of 5)

The five-star rating is reserved for a truly exceptional performance. Everything from the orchestra's blend and tone color to each soloist's accuracy and phrasing has to be just right. Too much of anything is indulgent, and too little leaves one wanting. Mikhail Pletnev's concert this Wednesday was the perfect middle ground, and a certifiable five-star performance.

Mozart's Piano Concerto No.24 by Mikhail Pletnev

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Music Review: Yuja Wang Triptych 3

Date: 20 June 2015

Performers: Yuja Wang (pianist),  Jaap van Zweden (conductor), HK Philharmonic

Rating: **** (4 out of 5)

28-year-old Yuja Wang is the latest darling of the classical music world. As far as a piano superstar goes, the Beijing native ticks all the boxes – an early start at the age of six, musician parents, major international awards and an exclusive recording contract with Deutsche Grammophon.

Brahms' Piano Concerto No. 2 by Yuja Wang

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Music Review: Rach 3

Date: 10 January 2015

Performers: Behzod Abduraimov (pianist),  Thomas Dausgaard (conductor), HK Philharmonic
Rating: *** (3 out of 5)

The HK Philharmonic is off to a good start in 2015 with a crowd-pleasing programme of romantic pieces. Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3, considered one of the most technically difficult piano works ever composed, took centre stage on January 9 and 10, enlisting Danish conductor Thomas Dausgaard and 25-year-old Uzbekistani pianist Behzod Abduraimov. The latter won the grand prize at the London International Piano Competition at the age of 18 and is now an exclusive Decca artist.

Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 3
by Behzod Abduraimov

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Music Review: Lang Lang Plays Tchaikovsky

Date: 19 December 2014
Performers: Lang Lang (pianist), Jaap van Zweden (conductor), HK Philharmonic
Rating: **** (4 out of 5)

Lang Lang is perhaps the most recognizable pianist alive today. His fame surpasses even that of Martha Argerich and Evgeny Kissin – which makes him the best hope to save the waning classical music industry. But Lang is also controversial and divisive – music fans either love him or hate him. Those in the latter group find him showy, over-indulgent and more interested in making a spectacle of himself than of the music he plays.

Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1 by Lang Lang

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Music Review: Puccini's Turandot

Date: 13 December 2014
Performers: Kingman Lo (director), Opera Society of HK, HK Virtuosi
Rating: *** (3 out of 5)

In the last month of 2014, the Opera Society of Hong Kong teamed up with Hong Kong Virtuosi to stage four performances of Puccini’s Turandot. This run of the opera was more unusual than most – the matinees on December 13th and 14th featured an alternate ending written in 2001 by contemporary Italian composer Luciano Berio. Opera lovers who are accustomed to the original ending by Franco Alfano – who completed Puccini’s unfinished score after his untimely death – were eager to find out how Berio’s new finale measured up.

Puccini's Turandot by Opera Society of HK

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Music Review: Radio 4 Anniversary Concert

Date: 5 December 2014
Performers: Li Biao (percussionist), Lawrence Foster (conductor), HK Philharmonic
Rating: **** (4 out of 5)

To mark the 40th anniversary of RTHK Radio 4, the Hong Kong Philharmonic put on two tribute concerts on December 5 and 6 featuring, among other things, a new composition by local composer Richard Tsang. The performance was led by American conductor Lawrence Foster who is best known for his interpretation of the works of Romanian composer George Enescu.

Schwantner's Percussion Concerto by Li Biao

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Music Review: Brahms 1 & 4

Date: 12 November 2014
Performers: David Atherton (conductor), HK Philharmonic
Rating: *** (3 out of 5)

Standing in for the late grand maestro Lorin Maazel, David Atherton conducted two evenings of an all-Brahms programme on November 12 and 15. A Georg Solti protégé, Atherton spent 12 years as resident conductor of the Royal Opera House and co-founded the London Sinfonietta. The English native is no stranger to Hong Kong audiences either, taking the helm as music director of the HK Phil from 1989 to 2000.

Brahms' Symphonies Nos.1 and 4 by David Atherton

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Music Review: Mahler 5

Date: 17 October 2014

Performers: Vassily Sinaisky (conductor), HK Philharmonic

Rating: *** (3 out of 5)

Mahler 5 was one of the marquee shows in the HK Phil’s 2014/15 programme. Still recuperating from an injured shoulder, however, music director Jaap Zweden had to sit this one out and ask Russian conductor Vassily Sinaisky to step in. Sinaisky’s calendar should be wide open these days, after he resigned as chief conductor of Moscow’s renowned Bolshoi Theatre in December 2013. His sudden departure might have something to do with the acid attack earlier that year that nearly blinded a ballet director. The day after Sinaisky announced his decision to leave, lead dancer Pavel Dmitrichenko was sentenced to six years in prison for his role in the attack. The turn of events was more dramatic as any opera Sinaisky had directed during his three-year tenure at Bolshoi.

Mahler's Symphony No. 5  by Vassily Sinaisky

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Music Review: National Day Celebration

Date: 27 September 2014
Performers: Warren Lee (pianist), Huang Ying (soprano), Ken Lam (conductor), HK Philharmonic
Rating: **** (4 out of 5)

Every autumn, the HK Philharmonic puts together a programme of Chinese music to celebrate the National Day of the People’s Republic. It invariably includes one of the two popular Chinese concertos: Butterfly Lovers for the violin and Yellow River for the piano. This year was no exception, and the programme comprised the Yellow River concerto, an overture by composer Shi Wanchun and a number of folk songs and opera arias. Carrying the baton was Ken Lam, a former corporate lawyer who found his true calling in classical music and has gone on become one of the most respected conductors in Hong Kong and beyond.

Yin's Yellow River Concerto by Warren Lee

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Music Review: Michael Collins Plays Mozart

Date: 13 September 2014
Performers: Michael Collins (conductor/clarinetist), HK Sinfonietta
Rating: **** (4 out of 5)

Michael Collins is one of the best classical clarinetists of our time. He is as much an accomplished soloist as he is a sought-after chamber music partner. In recent years, he has been trying his hand as a conductor, taking up baton for the City of London Sinofonia (he’s Principal Conductor). On September 13, Collins made a one-night stop in Hong Kong to perform – and conduct – two of Mozart’s best loved wind concertos with members of the Hong Kong Sinfonietta.

Mozart's Clarinet Concerto by Michael Collins

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Music Review: HK Phil Season Premiere 2014

Date: 5 September 2014
Performers: Yefim Bronfman (pianist), Jaap van Zweden (conductor), HK Philharmonic
Rating: *** (3 out of 5)

The new season of the Hong Kong Philharmonic opened with the usual fanfare on September 5. The premiere, which featured Soviet-born Israeli pianist Yefim Bronfman, was preceded by a brief opening ceremony officiated by Home Affairs Secretary Tsang Tak-sing. Important people spoke, champagne flutes clanged, camera flashes lit up the atrium. But a question lingered: will the new season bring pleasant surprises or will it be another string of run-of-the-mill performances by an orchestra that is perennially stuck in an artistic rut?

Brahms' Piano Concerto No.1 by Yefim Bronfman

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Music Review: Mozart Requiem

Date: 26 July 2014
Performers: Rolf Beck (conductor), HK Sinfonietta, Singfest
Rating: *** (3 out of 5)

As part of Singfest festival, the Hong Kong Sinfonietta paired up with the Singfest team on July 26 at Hong Kong City Hall for an ambitious programme of sacred choral works. Taking the baton was German conductor Rolf Beck, a 20-year veteran chorus master of the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra Choir and founder of the Schleswig Holstein Festival Choir Academy. The performance opened with Mendelssohn’s Three Psalms and Hör Mein Bitten (Hear My Prayer), followed by Mozart’s Requiem Mass in D Minor.

Mozart's Requiem by HK Sinfonietta and Singfest

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